How to customize your 1911 grips

In this thread I will try to tell you how I do my work. I will be the teacher so to speak. I am sure there are a lot of you out there that know more than I do, but I will share my ways, as well as ask questions on your ways. I can always learn, you never stop learning. I have been customizing for many years and now am ready to give some of my tips to others. Below is a picture of a set of Cherrywood that is just plain beautiful. I stippled a design on them and finished with Tru-Oil. I will post new pictures for your enjoyment in the future. ENJOY THE BEAUTY.

This is a set of straight line stabilized Spalted Maple with Ebony dot inlays. This wood was a little on the plain side, so I decided to dress it up a bit. I think the dots do a lot for them. Just enough to make them look good but not too flashy. Give me your thoughts. This pair has no finish on them, they are just sanded with 600 grit and polished on a buffing wheel, which makes a real nice natural finish. Enjoy the pictures.

anfoman76, Thanks for the post and keep checking for new pictures. You should try a set of grips sometime it is very satisfying. I used to build custom rifle stocks years ago and did real well with them. Weatherby even offered me a job but I would have had to move to CA, and that was not going to happen LOL. I have a few pictures of some custom stocks I did if you are interested I will post a few of them.
Thanks again and ENJOY!

Todays picture for you to look at is a skull logo for a Navy Seal, don't ask me what it represents, because I am not sure. I do know that the lettering underneath is his unit number. The carving is on a beautifully figured piece of Mesquite Burl. I will show the grips at a later date. I will show you a before and after shot. That way you can see how much it dressed up the grips. ENJOY THE PICS

Thanks for the information on the skull, I'm pretty sure you have the correct meaning. If I ever talk to the man again, I will ask him. I wish I had ask him at the time he wanted the grips.
Again thanks for the post, if I can ever be of assistance to you, please don't hesitate to contact me. I am always willing to share information.
Carl

Here is a set of Stabilized Amboyna Burl that I have just finished. They have the most beautiful grain patterns. The grain runs deep and the picture as usual does not do them justice.
Has anyone got any ideas on a design for these grips or should I leave them plain? Mayby some medallions, but what kind? Give me some ideas. Enjoy the scenery. Look deep into the wood.

This is the set of grips with the skull carved on them. On the other one the Trident pin is inlaid flush with the wood. The wood is a beautiful piece of Mesquite Burl. Getting harder and harder to find. When I see this wood I always buy whatever I can afford. It is a nice wood to work with and has such depth. I always bookmatcch my blanks. It makes for a much nicer pair of grips. Notice the holes at the bottom of the grips for the MSP, personally I like this better than the slot. I build a lot of my grips with a recess in the back, therefor no slots or holes, it fits right over the MSP.
ENJOY!

This is another set of Slimcarry grips. They are just over 1/8 of an inch. New screws and bushings have to be used in order for them to fit the gun. The wood here is Ambrosia Maple, it is a rare wood and very hard for me to find. This is the only piece I have found. If any of you know where I could pick up some more, please let me know. I like to work with it. It is a nice wood and has lots of contrast that looks great on a blued or black frame. Shucks, it even looks good on stainless. This set has an oil finish.
ENJOY!

This is one of my favorite woods to work with, it is hard and durable and is always a surprise when a piece is bookmached. You just never know whats inside until the split. The wood is AZ Desert Ironwood Burl. Notice the square bottom, these were made for a Mag-well and indented on the back for the MSP. They have a smooth natural polish finish. The wood is so hard it takes a natural polish that is a mirror finish. I have defused the lighting to keep down the reflections.
To me this is one of my many favorite sets. I always get confused when someone ask me which I like best, because all woods are beautiful to me.
ENJOY!

Below is a picture of Massacra Ebony with the initials W. I. inlaid with silver metallic. The picture does not do them justice as usual. I had originally made these grips for one of my stainless 1911's and a friend of mine saw them and had to have them, then he wanted his initials on them. Turned out pretty cool.
ENJOY!

This is a set of AZ Desert Ironwood with the initials J.D. inlaid in them. I warned the gentleman that the black would not show up as much as I would like. He stood his ground and insisted on black. They look a lot better than the photograph, but still not enough contrast to suite me. They have several coats of Tru-Oil on them, which I told him they did not need, again he insisted so here they are. After all that being said, they did turn out to look OK. Hope you enjoy the pictures. Lots more to come.

Last post for the day. This is a piece of scrap walnut that I had in the shop. I cut the rose from white tail antler, it is one piece, inlaid it flush with the wood then scrimshawed the 3-D look. This was just a practice piece that I did a long time ago. I still think it looks cool. I will be doing a set of grips next month with a Maltese cross inlaid out of antler. Should look great. As soon as I finish, I will post it.